Grapplers respond to Hannibal loss with three straight wins

By Jardyn Angell, Correspondent
Posted 1/19/22

 Mexico head wrestling coach Gayle Adams thought his team came out flat last Wednesday against Hannibal.

 In addition to confronting top-tier opponents in the Pirates, the Bulldogs were …

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Grapplers respond to Hannibal loss with three straight wins

Posted

 Mexico head wrestling coach Gayle Adams thought his team came out flat last Wednesday against Hannibal.

 In addition to confronting top-tier opponents in the Pirates, the Bulldogs were also facing adversity with injuries and open weight classes.

 Ricky Juarez (120 pounds) dropped a nail-biting 3-2 decision to top-3 ranked Tristen Essig, Jokiah Sewell (170) fell to returning state champion Trevor Wilson, and sophomore Emille Scanvino remained sideline with an injury.

The Bulldogs picked up wins by fall from Dylan Mosley (138), Morgan Grubb (182) and Deacon Haag (220), Keith Ransom (145) added a dominant 15-0 tech-fall win and Watson Azdell (132) won by forfeit. 

But Mexico gave up points in open weight classes at 113 and 195 and wound up on the wrong end of a 50-29 final.

 “Right now we’re battling some injuries and we’re giving these teams 18 points right off the giddy-up,” explained Adams. “So we can’t have any hiccups and our team’s gotta fight for every point.”

The Bulldogs bounced back with a quick turnaround on Thursday in Osage, opening with a 46-30 win over the hosts.

Haag won after his opponent left with an injury, Juarez and Grant Van Horn (132) won by fall and Mosley and Ransom added tech-fall victories in the dual.

Next up was Versailles.

 Kicking things off at 182 pounds, Grubb opened with a gutsy 9-8 decision win, and Haag added a win by fall shortly after at heavyweight. But Mexico was open at 195 and 113, Keegan Koons dropped a close 9-6 decision and – though he was leading 7-0 – Marcos Matuz (220) took a loss after sustaining an injury.

 ust like that the Bulldogs found themselves trailing 21-9.

 Then they flipped the switch.

 Juarez won by fall, Azdell squeaked out a 3-2 decision, Van Horn added a pin, Mosley’s opponent left with an injury, Ransom won by fall and Cameron Beasley (152) tacked on six points by forfeit to turn the tables.

 Sewell added the cherry on top with a win by fall in the final match to claim a 48-27 victory for the Bulldogs.

 “Those seniors know that we’ve got to bring intensity every time we go out and wrestle and they’re teaching the young guys that,” explained Adams. 

 Mexico wrapped things up in Osage with a quick 70-6 dismantling of Southern Boone.

 The Eagles had just four competitors and picked up their lone win by forfeit in the open 113 class, while Koons, Azdell and Mosley won by fall for Mexico, Ransom won by an 11-0 major decision and a handful of open forfeits sprinkled in rounded things out for the Bulldogs.

 The Bulldogs expect a busy week this week, with a dual at Moberly scheduled for Tuesday prior to press time, a tri-meet with Fulton at St. Charles West on Thursday and a home tri-meet with Centralia and Sullivan on Friday.

 Then on Saturday, Haag will make a solo trip to Brookfield to compete in the Gary Haag Invitational Tournament, named after the Mexico senior’s grandfather.

 “We thought it would be neat with Deacon as a senior that he could go up and wrestle in that to honor his family and his grandfather,” Adams explained. “Actually, his dad is going to coach him in that tournament, so it’s kind of a neat thing with the family tradition there.”

 

 

 


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